Diabolical Master of Black Magic: Examining Agency through Villainy in “The Voodoo Man”

In “The Witch Doctor’s Revenge” (1941), The Voodoo Man—the titular villain of a series of shorts published in three Fox Feature Syndicate serials—is approached by an elderly Haitian plantation worker.¹ The plantation worker seeks revenge against an unnamed drunken plantation owner who has beaten him and another worker for begging for provisions. The Voodoo Man agrees to assist the elderly victim by constructing a wax figurine of the plantation owner and casting it into a fire. Miles away from The Voodoo Man’s lair, the plantation owner dies in agony. After being implored to investigate the plantation owner’s death